The Kia K4 hatch arrives in Australia in November, when the four- and five-door small car also receives an updated, more efficient 2.0-litre engine.
The 2026 Kia K4 hatchback is nearing its Australian launch, with the buyer-favourite five-door body style set to join the four-door sedan launched at the start of the year.
Due in Kia showrooms in November, the K4 hatchback will round out the small car line-up in Australia – at least until a hybrid version launches globally – but the sedan won't be left untouched.
For Model Year 2026 (MY26), the K4 S, Sport and Sport+ will gain a more-efficient, but less powerful, Atkinson Cycle version of the 2.0-litre shared with the Seltos, Hyundai i30 Sedan and Hyundai Kona.
Matched to a continuously variable transmission (CVT) automatic instead of the current six-speed torque-converter automatic, the updated 2.0-litre promises to use less fuel and, crucially for Kia, cut emissions after the introduction of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES).
Power is rated at 110kW and 180Nm, down 2kW and 12Nm from 112kW and 192Nm, while combined fuel consumption is expected to decrease from 7.4L/100km to the low-to-mid sixes, representing a reduction of at least 10 per cent.
A Kia Australia spokesperson told Drive the updated 2026 K4 sedan could launch shortly after the hatch's planned arrival in November rather than concurrently, however, local customer deliveries are still expected by the end of the year.
While the K4 hatch was unveiled alongside the sedan at the 2024 New York motor show, it has launched later with deliveries in the United States not expected until late 2025 – the same time as Australia, despite a far shorter distance from its Mexican factory.
Measuring 4440mm long, 1450mm tall and 1850mm wide with a 2720mm wheelbase in GT-Line guise, the K4 hatch is 70mm shorter, 10mm taller and 50mm wider than the five-door Cerato GT, with a 20mm longer wheelbase.
Compared to the K4 sedan, the hatch is 280mm shorter and 10mm taller, while all other dimensions are identical.
The K4 – the Cerato replacement – is expected to gain a hybrid powertrain when it launches in Europe in 2026 as a successor to the Ceed, which is likely to open the door for Australia, as it will be sourced from the same factory in Mexico.
In January 2025, Kia Australia product planning boss Roland Rivero said the brand was "confident" a K4 hybrid would become available in the future.
"K4 this stage, doesn't offer a hybrid at all," Rivero said. "But numerous markets and regions want one, including Australia.
"So obviously Europe really wants it, and rightfully so. The CO2 regulations there are already strict. And we’re the same.
"With big regions, like Europe demanding it and requesting it, we’re quite confident that it's going to come."
Australia will miss out on a wagon version of the K4 expected to launch in Europe in 2026 due to "very low" sales for this body type locally, with Rivero claiming in a recent interview with Drive that high SUV demand has made it difficult to "justify the business case" for Kia-badged wagons.
Pricing and specification details for the 2026 Kia K4 hatch – and the updated K4 sedan – will be shared closer to its Australian launch in November.
If the outgoing Cerato line-up is a guide, the hatch and sedan are likely to be priced identically, with the K4 range currently positioned between $30,590 and $42,990 before on-road costs.
ANCAP recently applied a split safety rating to the Kia K4 in Australia, with the base S variant scoring four stars due to a lack of more-advanced crash-avoidance features standard-fit in higher grades, which were awarded five stars.
Jordan is a motoring journalist based in Melbourne with a lifelong passion for cars. He has been surrounded by classic Fords and Holdens, brand-new cars, and everything in between from birth, with his parents’ owning an automotive workshop in regional Victoria. Jordan started writing about cars in 2021, and joined the Drive team in 2024.
